"For I know the plans I have for you', declares the Lord..." Jeremiah 29:11

Tuesday, August 26, 2014

The last 6 months...

So many things change when you have a child... CORRECTION: EVERYTHING changes when you have a child. For example BB (Before Brynlee) I would have spent my days/evenings while Cozart was working, going to yoga, spending time with friends, running errands, cleaning, napping, pedicures, blogging, reading, etc... A.B. (After Brynlee): well let's just say, I haven't been on my mat in months (going on a year) my friends without kids probably refer to me as an old friend and the ones with kids, I still have only seen a handful of times, unless of course they live within walking distance (like across the street). Errands happen only when they absolutely have to and must be completed in between naps and preferably on a full belly (hers not mine). My house is in such a dire need of a good, deep scrub down I'm afraid I'd have to ship Brynlee and the dogs off for a good week to get it all done. Naps: HA! Pedicure: what's that? As for blogging; well I think we all know how much of that I have been doing. And the only reading that gets done is skimming chapters in parenting books in hopes of finding some hidden secret on how NOT to completely screw up this poor little beings life!

And although you can never be fully prepared for these dramatic changes, they are in fact totally, 100%, beyond worth it when you hear those little baby giggles, she reaches for you, as if in your arms is her very favorite place to be or when her little smile makes your heart burst with the type of joy you could never have ever imagined before your life was completely turned inside out and upside down.

I could go on for days reviewing the last 10 months, all the milestones, the major moments and fun we've had as a little family of 3 but I'll just give you the cliff note version in an effort to actually complete and post an update.

Brynlee is consistently in the upper percentile of both height and weight. (Without her baby book in front of me, I just have to give estimates.)

4 month checkup: 15lbs, 23 inches

6 month checkup: 19lbs, 26 inches

9 month checkup: 21lbs, 29 inches

She has 3 teeth that are completely through (2 bottom, one top) 3 that have just started to cut through the skin (all 3 on top) and 2 more that should be cutting through any day now (both bottom). She is quite the trooper with all these teeth coming in. She has her days of restless sleep, not much interest in eating, wanting to be held and a TON of drool but through it all, I think we have been pretty blessed with one tough cookie!

She is FINALLY crawling. We, and her pediatrician, were sure she was going to bypass crawling all together and go right to walking. But this week, she finally figured out moving FORWARD on all 4s is much more efficient than moving backwards on your belly or relying on Mommy and Daddy to hold her hands to walk from point A to B. She pulls herself up on anything she get a good hold on. And yes, we've had plenty of bumps and bruises already, with plenty more to come, I'm sure.

She eats like a champ, feeding herself 99.9% of the time - "I'm a big kid now Mom!". She drinks from a sippy cup but still gets 4 bottles a day (2 formula - 2 breast milk but my milk supply is quickly fading away to nothing so not sure how long I'll be able to keep up).

We definitely do not have a quiet baby on our hands. She is constantly babbling. Mmmmaaaa Ma, Dada, Ooohs, Bababababa, etc... She makes a different sound for what a kitty says (more of a squeal than a meow) and she is completely in love with our cat, Tink. She signs "all done" and understands "eat" but I haven't seen her sign it herself yet. She waves bye-bye and will lean in for a kiss (mouth wide open), but only when she is in the mood. She loves music and bobs her head along as soon as she hears it. And she seizes every opportunity to play fetch with our Boston Terrier, Winnie. She growls like a monster baby and clicks her tongue when she sees a squirrel.

Her favorite time of the day is bath time. And very rarely puts up any fuss whatsoever when going to sleep at night. 7:30 sharp she's ready and out within minutes. (Naps are a slightly different story) She sleeps through the night and typically wakes between 6 and 7am. And yes, we are fully aware of how blessed we are to have such a great sleeper!

She made her first flight in April to attend my sister, Katey's, bridal shower in Minnesota. And her 2nd flight in June, also to Minnesota for the wedding. She also was in and attended her first wedding (unless you count Freddie and Naomi's while I was pregnant?). She did great on both flights to and from. Thankfully Daddy was with for the 2nd trip. It made everything much easier having a 2nd pair of hands!!

This past weekend was Brynlee's baptism. It was a very special day. We were blessed with many friends and family members to help celebrate this wonderful time!

I will close with a few (hundred... JK) pictures. She sure is a special little girl! I don't know if I will ever get over how incredibly blessed we are... Definitely well beyond what we deserve. I still find myself waking in the middle of the night... Not because I have to get up with her but just to stare at the monitor in utter amazement... "She's mine! All mine! (And Cozart's too of course) And so much more than I could have ever dreamed of having." My cup runeth over!

Easter...

6 month pictures with Dylan...

Just out for a stroll...

7 months!

Swimming with Daddy...

Ready for church!

Cruisin'...

8 months!! ("Really Mom, we're doing these pictures this early in the morning??")

5 comments:

I love it, Gen. I love all the pictures of Brynlee on FB and Instagram. I'm so happy for you and Cozart. I think she looks like both of you guys!! I hope to meet her and see you guys sometime soon!! Xoxo.